Innovative solutions will be necessary to reduce methane emissions, one of the most powerful greenhouse gases, experts sayThe U.S. is emitting more methane from oil and gas production than previously thought – and it's causing billions of dollars in environmental damage per year, according researchers.
A wide array of technologies exist today that allow scientists to detect methane emissions more accurately.The study's researchers gathered data by combining aerial infrared spectroscopy from the six regions – taken by flying planes over huge areas and reflecting sunlight to rapidly detect the largest emissions – with simulated field measurements from potential sources of methane emissions.
In areas focused on producing oil, oftentimes the methane gas will leak out of the ground, Sherwin said. It also can get mixed in with the oil as it is siphoned out of the liquid storage tanks, he said. "If you vent or flare it into the atmosphere, you are losing the economic value," he said. "...If you capture that gas, you can actually use it and sell it as energy rather than just simply waste it."
New farming techniques are also being developed for a number of different crops, such as rice, which is typically grown in flooded paddy fields that are one of the major emitters of methane, Sherwin said.Another of the things that need to be looked at closely is how waste is disposed of, since landfills – and the food waste that gets dumped there – are a major source of methane emissions, Rabe said.